


Hazelnuts and Goblins

by LeaBookjoy



Category: Der Rattenfänger von Hameln | The Pied Piper of Hamelin (Fairy Tale), Labyrinth (1986), Nußknacker und Mausekönig | Nutcracker and the Mouse King - E. T. A. Hoffmann
Genre: Alternate Universe - 19th Century, Dark Jareth but not too dark, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fantasy, Post-Labyrinth, Reference to The Pied Piper of Hamelin, References to The Nutcracker, Sarah is a kind of quiet badass, Slow Burn, This story exists thanks to the mulled wine, but with some twists, more or less anyway
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-16
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-02-25 23:48:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 15,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21823924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeaBookjoy/pseuds/LeaBookjoy
Summary: A revisit of Labyrinth movie freely inspired by "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King" but also" the Pied Piper of Hamelin".Once upon a time, Sarah had triumphed over the Labyrinth and defeated the Goblin King to save her brother and the other children of Hamelin.But this year, as nights become colder and colder and Christmas is fast approaching, children began to disappear again and it's up to Sarah to do everything in her power to save them ...Even if she has to face once again the dangerously attractive Goblin King ...Si vous voulez la version française : https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13538680/1/Noisettes-et-Goblins
Relationships: Jareth/Sarah Williams
Comments: 64
Kudos: 70





	1. The Red and Golden Christmas tree

**Author's Note:**

> I totally blame the LFFL for feeding my obsession !  
> (Just kidding, thank you all for making me want to publish this story !!)
> 
> Anyway it's my first fanfiction so I hope it will turned out good =)
> 
> (Sorry for all the grammatical or spelling mistakes, English is not my mother tongue ...)
> 
> (Version en français : https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13538680/1/Noisettes-et-Goblins)
> 
> (Disclosure- Of course I do not own the Labyrinth or any of its original Characters, same for the Nutcracker and the Pied Pipper of Hamelin ... But they so own me !)

Sarah watched the snow falling behind the window. The flakes swirled in a hypnotic ballet and despite the chimney fire burning in the room just behind her, she couldn't help shivering. Tightening the shawl she wore around her shoulders, she wiped the condensation that had accumulated on the window and left her vantage point to return to the chair she had left, the book she was reading lying abandoned on the coffee table next to it. Her parents' library had always been her favorite room in the house.

With its high ceilings and all the oak woodwork, the Williams library was a place that was both refined and comfortable. The huge blue silk carpet on the parquet floor muffled most footsteps and gave the room an elegant touch. Framed by two terrestrial and celestial globes that her father had brought back from one of his trips, the imposing dark marble fireplace created a warmth throughout the room that made long winter evenings almost bearable.

In their display cases made of glass and wood, books covered the walls and dealt with the most diverse subjects : medicine, history and geography but also agriculture, astrology or even mythology. There were only the horrible plant moldings and that awful mythological fresco on the ceiling that spoiled the warm atmosphere of the room a little. Robert, Sarah's father, was very fond of it, but fortunately, her mother-in-law, Irene, had promised Sarah that as soon as the good weather returned, a beautiful starry sky would replace the loves of Zeus.

Looking at the time on the gilt copper enameled wooden wall clock, Sarah sighed and went to put the book she was reading in its place on the shelf. Normally, the carefully bound scarlet book should have captured her attention but it was not a usual time.

The rest of the year, Sarah could walk past the mirrors of the house without shaking, see her reflection in the windows without blinking, walk in a room plunged in darkness without startling at the slightest scratch.

The rest of the year, she didn't sleep with a light in her bedroom and a paper cutter under her pillow.

The rest of the year, she could almost think it had all been a dream.

But when the days started to shorten, when the wind became cold and howling, when the mist invaded the streets at night, when Christmas was approaching…

It’s been ten years now but for Sarah it was like it was yesterday.

“Miss Sarah ?”

Sarah turned around. One of the servants was standing in the doorway. Lost in thought, Sarah hadn't heard the door open.

“Miss, they're waiting for you downstairs.”

“Thank you Marie, I'm going down immediately.”

Marie nodded and closed the door behind her.

Sarah took a deep breath and adjusted her long gloves. Her black hair raised in a bun held in place by a golden net, she wore a Greek-style dress in sumptuous dark green silk. The fitted bodice highlighted her waist and if the dress was rather low-cut in keeping with the fashion of these days, the long pearl gray cashmere shawl she wore covered her chest just as well.

Knowing that she could no longer back off, Sarah left the library and went down into the large parlor. About twenty people were in the room, chatting about politics and gossip in the shade of the huge red and golden Christmas tree that the family had finished decorating the day before. The dinner was supposed to be a family meal, but Hans, the fiancé of her half-sister Cecilia, couldn't help but invite some of his wealthy friends. Sarah lingered for a moment at the top of the stairs, watching them. Chatting in small groups while the servants moved around the room to serve them refreshments and small appetizers, the guests were all great city notables accompanied by their wives and children, dressed in their best assets and waiting for dinner to start.

Raising her skirt, Sarah discreetly went down the stairs and was about to go sit aside when she heard someone calling her.

“Sarah here you are !”

Turning her head, she saw Robert beckoning her to join them. Irene was standing beside him as were Toby, Cecilia and of course Hans.

Too late to run away now Sarah.

Ignoring the sarcastic voice in her head, she walked over to them.

“My daughter”, said her father, taking her in his arms to kiss her on the forehead. “Look at yourself, you are resplendent !”

Irene smiled at her playfully.

“Robert is right, after this evening, I will have to warn Jesper that he will have to face a real invasion of suitors.”

“Don't worry Sarah”, Toby adds with a falsely serious face. “With the wooden saber that Dad promised me for Christmas, I would be there to help Jesper defend your honor.”

Robert and Irene laughed and even Sarah couldn't help but smile. Her mother-in-law might tease her about it, but Sarah knew that the day a suitor would show up at the door, Irene would welcome him with open arms. When Albert started courting her two years ago, Irene was so enthusiastic that Robert couldn't help but point out that she was already supposed to be married and happily married. Of course, Albert had the imagination of a sparrow and the intelligence that went with it, but that didn't stop Irene from hoping.

"Your parents are right Sarah," Hans said in a smooth voice. “You are more and more beautiful with each passing year.”

Stiffening, Sarah settled for responding to his compliment with a tense smile. Tall, blond and attractive, Hans was the very promising mayor of Hamelin just like his father and his grandfather before him. He was also the fiancé of her half-sister Cecilia for several months now and everyone adored him : her parents, her half-sister and even Toby, who was usually rather reserved with strangers, liked him very much. Sarah was more skeptical : she didn't like the way he looked at Mr. Schwarzwald's daughter sometimes, or the way he was a little too close to her when he spoke to her. But Cecilia loved her and Sarah couldn't say anything because it was Cecilia.

After the death of his first wife, Sarah’s mother, Robert didn’t want to remarry and it took several years to recover. The fact that she died with her lover in attendance didn’t help the matter. But when he met Irene at a ball given by Hans’s father, it was love at first sight and a year later, they were married. Irene was also a widow and from her previous marriage, she had Cecilia, older than Sarah, who had come to live with them when her mother remarried.

At first, Sarah had been delighted to have a sister to play secret games with but she quickly became disillusioned. Petite, blonde, with big azure eyes, a porcelain skin and cute as a button, Cecilia had quickly made Sarah realize that she was just a patch of mud on her elegant dresses. Even though Irene and Roberts had tried to ease the tensions between the two children, Sarah had struggled to get used to her new family and when Toby was born, she had the impression that her father had no more place for her in his new life. However, after the "incident", she and Toby had become very close and in the process, she also got closer to Irene, regarding her as a second mother. But Cecilia had remained Cecilia and once adults, the two young women had continued to keep their distance.

“Well, wouldn't it be my favorite niece in this dress worthy of Titania ?”

“Uncle Drosselmeyer !” exclaimed Toby with a big smile. “You came !”

Turning around, Sarah found herself face to face with a tall, thin, salt-pepper-haired man dressed soberly but tastefully. She smiled and hugged him.

“Uncle Drosselmeyer, I'm so glad to see you !”

And she was. Besides her father and Toby, Drosselmeyer was the person she was closest to in the family : he was the one who supported her when her mother died, the one who helped her cope with the coldness and pettiness of Cecilia, the one who had helped her when she believed that all was lost and what he created with a few pieces of wood… Real works of art.

“Me too my little one, me too.”

After greeting the rest of the family and congratulating Irene on the splendor of the Christmas decorations, he turned to Sarah again, eyes bright.

“Would this beautiful girl please accompany the old man that I am to the tree ? I thought I saw one of my old friends there.”

Sarah laughs.

“Come on uncle, you're not that old. Would you like me to ask the widow Jenkins what’s her opinion ?”

Irene laughed and Toby almost choked on a toast he had just swallowed.

“Oh cruel cruel child. All the more reason for you to accompany me, you wouldn't want to leave me alone facing her, would you ?”

Shaking her head with a smile, Sarah took the arm he held out for her and accompanied him to a group of old gentlemen who were very happy to hear all the gossip that Drosselmeyer brought to them.

Half an hour later, a crystal tinkle was heard and someone asked for silence.

Standing straight, Hans stepped into the center of the room, Cecilia regal on her arm in her burgundy silk dress.

“Ah I see the peacock has not changed much”, muttered Drosselmeyer.

Sarah stifled her laughter with a fit of cough.

“My friends, it is a real pleasure to be here with you this evening. Thank you for accepting the invitation of my esteemed future father-in-law despite the snow that threatened to engulf us all this evening.”

Some polite laughter burst out. Sarah rolled her eyes.

“I will spare you a long speech but I just wanted to take advantage of this evening to announce that Cecilia and I have finally set a date for our wedding. In a month, my sweet Cecilia will make me the happiest of men.”

He leaned in to kiss her and applause was heard from all sides. Beside a Cecilia beaming with happiness, Hans spoke again.

“If I had known ten years ago that I would stand there in front of you, beaming with happiness ... But this dark era is now behind us and it is now towards the future we must turned. (He raised his glass.) To happiness and the future !”

The guests followed suit.

“To happiness and the future !”

Conversations resumed, the guests hastened to personally congratulate the young couple and soon it was time to go into the dining room for the meal. But when Uncle Drosselmeyer and Sarah followed the other guests, they both carefully avoided looking towards the fireplace, where a magnificent silver nutcracker with pale blond hair and unusual eyes sat on the mantle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG I can't believe that I FINALLY decided to write AND publish my first Labyrinth fanfiction ... I must admit that it's been a while since I thought about it but now it's real and I'm very excited !!
> 
> I hope you liked this first chapter, I don't know when I will post the next part but probably soon ... Well I hope anyway ><
> 
> Some informations for you :  
> \- the story takes place in Hamelin but if the city does exist in Germany, my Hamelin looks more like a 19th century village of German, English and Alsatian inspiration (a mixture of Hamelin, Colmar in Alsace and the city of Ebenezer Scrooge from A Christmas Carol =D)  
> \- if you have time and you love the Nutcracker story, you must watch the Nussknacker und Mausekönig (2015) !! Awesome movie perfect for Christmas (which inspired me a lot for this story ... So much possibility of fanfictions between Mausekönig and Marie =D)


	2. Marrons Glacés

For Sarah, the dinner seemed endless. Decorated with fir branches and red and golden apples, the dining table was sumptuous. With the candles that served as much as ornaments as a light source and the large fireplace where a good fire crackled, the room had become a warm and festive place … And Hans couldn’t help but point out that at least ten times.

Once everyone was seated, the meal began. It was first the starters with consommé à la neige de Florence, oyster soup, Tschy and poached eggs à la Rossini. Sitting between Toby and Uncle Drosselmeyer, Sarah pretended not to see Toby's plate disappear under the table or the chops full of soup of Merlin, their dog.

Then came the time for the first dish : paupiette of sole, turbot à l’amiral and a puff pastry filled with foie gras. Sarah heard Uncle Drosselmeyer mumble something about a belt that was too tight and she smiled but it was short-lived.

“Are you ok Sarah” Toby asked next to her. “You suddenly turn so pale !”

She offered him a reassuring smile.

“All is well, I got dizzy but it passed.”

Patting on her hand, Toby nodded and returned to his plate but Uncle Drosselmeyer didn’t seem convinced and gave her a questioning look. She nodded to reassure him. With so many people around, she couldn't really tell him that she was almost sure she had seen a goblin appear behind Hans' shoulder. Especially since it was no longer there and she herself was no longer sure of what she had seen. Maybe it was a interplay of light and shadow or the wine playing tricks on her ?

She had almost convinced herself she imagined the whole thing when the second course started with the duck confit, the partridges à la Souvarov and the goose stuffed with chestnuts. She and Toby were debating the striking resemblance between the goose and their former tutor when one of the guests, Mrs. Rosenberg yelped. The conversation sounds faded and everyone turned to her. She pointed her finger at the dish in front of her.

“There !”

Her neighbor, an old gentleman with a prominent mustache, leaned forward, the monocle riveted on the goose which was the object of all eyes.

“What is it dear ?”

Frowning, Mrs Rosenberg also leaned forward.

“But I could have sworn ... (She let out an embarrassed little laugh.) My god, I'm sorry I really thought I saw something moving behind the poultry.”

Sarah slowly put her fork down before slipping her hands under the table to keep them from shaking.

“Perhaps it was a rat ?” ventured a guest.

Irene glared at him.

“Certainly not !”

While he apologized profusely and Irene mentally wiped him out of all her next dinners, the conversations started again, the incident quickly forgotten except for Sarah who had lost her appetite.

Uncle Drosselmeyer leaned toward her.

“Maybe it's just a coincidence Sarah, so don't worry so much !”

Sarah gave him a skeptical look.

“Do you really mean that ?”

He looked at her knowingly.

“No but tormenting yourself at the slightest noise is useless. I have clearly seen the way your gaze blurs and the dark circles under your eyes that bloom each winter.

Sarah sighed and played with her food.

“I can’t help it. Sometimes I feel like they're all around me. What if one day they take him back ? And if they found a way to ...”

He cut her off.

“My dear child, they will not take him back. In his current form, they know that their king is much safer here than in his kingdom.”

“But …”

"And they can't restore him to his original shape" he continued. “Have a little faith in me Sarah.”

Sarah didn’t want to hurt her uncle’s feelings but she wasn’t convinced by his reasoning. After all, when we talked about goblins and especially "him", anything was possible. However, she nodded to reassure him and began to finish her plate.

After the entremets, the servants brought the desserts and everyone gasped in admiration in front of the pyramid of almond profiteroles surrounded by mince pie with dried fruits and spices and marrons glacés. Sarah had just finished her marrons glacés when Irene got up and out after exchanging a look with her husband. Sarah almost choked when she saw her coming back with the nutcracker.

He was tall, almost the size of an infant and finely decorated in silver and white tones. All wooden, someone had painted on him large white boots, a cloudy gray stocking and a top of the same color. His hair was light blonde and his strangely two-tone eyes seemed to follow you. His originality resulted in the delicate silver crown that he wore and which had not been painted on his forehead but created from scratch and the long cape made of silver feathers he wore.

“I have a surprise for you !”

The few children present, including Toby, cried out their joy when a servant brought a large bowl filled with nuts, almonds and hazelnuts which she placed on a small table out of the way. Entrusting the nutcracker to Toby, who was probably the oldest child in the group, Irene returned to the table with a smile.

“What a magnificent object” exclaimed one of the guests. “And very original ! Where is it from ?”

Sarah shifted her chair to keep an eye on the nutcracker.

"Irene found it last year in my brother's studio" said Robert while taking a sip of wine.

Irene laughs.

“It’s more like it found me! The box that contained it almost knocked me out while I was looking for one of my gloves that I had forgotten the day before when Drosselmeyer showed us his latest achievements.”

"At first, Uncle Drosselmeyer refused to sell it saying it was not finished" added Cecilia  with a sly smile . “But mom was able to convince him that such an object deserved a special place and not to be relegated to the bottom of an old dusty workshop.”

Sarah refrained from raising her eyes to heaven. The truth was that Cecilia had stolen it while Uncle Drosselmeyer didn’t pay attention and put it under the Christmas tree, claiming that it was a gift from her. They hadn't realized the trick until too late and Irene had been so delighted with the gift that Drosselmeyer couldn’t do anything. The next day, Sarah threw Cecilia's beautiful sapphire necklace into the river flowing next to Hamelin. Petty maybe but she felt better afterwards.

As the guests congratulated Uncle Drosselmeyer on his talent and the digestives started to be served, Mrs. Rosenberg noisily addressed her neighbor at the table.

“Isn't that the bell we hear?”

At her words, the conversations gradually faded and when the heavy bell ringing outside could be heard clearly, the atmosphere in the room suddenly darkened. Robert gestured to Reginald, the butler, who quickly disappeared without a word. Leaving the nutcracker on the ground, Toby came back to Sarah who hugged him.

The bell hadn't sounded like this in the middle of the night for years.

For exactly ten years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew I wasn't sure I could finish this chapter this week (traumatized by the last Star Wars >< #Reyloforever) and finally ... It must be the magic of Christmas =D
> 
> Thank you for all the kudos and the one comment =D Don't hesitate to tell me if you like what I wrote, it's always nice to read it x)
> 
> The plot is gradually starting to thicken ... I must admit that I like the suspense ><  
> A lot of food description in this chapter, especially in French (it always looks better in French ... Nobody wants to eat fat liver while foie gras ... =D)  
> If you have the opportunity, taste some marrons glacés, it's delicious =D (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marron_glac%C3%A9)
> 
> Anyway Happy reading and Merry Christmas to everyone !!


	3. Rowan branches

Eugenie Shultz was a child, barely 5 years old, tall like three apples and with curly blond hair. She had a soft spot for jumping in puddles, chocolate candy and ghost stories. Mr. and Mrs. Shultz had noticed her disappearance late this evening when one of the servants had wanted to recover a pair of scissors she thought she had forgotten in Eugenie's room. She had found the room empty, the bed intact as if no one had slept there, and Monsieur Grenouille, Eugenie's favorite toy, leaning on the sill of the wide open window. The servant's cries had woken up the whole house and research had been immediately undertaken. The house and its surroundings had been combed by the Shultz and all their servants, soon helped by their neighbors who had heard the noise. In vain, Eugenie remained missing and the alert had finally been raised.

When the Williams guests heard the news, the evening was quickly cut short. Nobody dared to say it out loud but everyone was thinking about it.

It had started again.

 **He** had returned.

Holding their children by the hand, hugging the babies in their arms, caressing the toddlers' hair with a trembling hand, the different guests left one by one until there were only the Williams, uncle Drosselmeyer and Hans left.

Robert and Hans exchanged a dark look.

“Darling ?” asked Irene.

Robert walked to her and took her hands.

“I have to go Irene, I'm sorry. They're going to need everyone at the City Hall.”

Irene smiled at him but Sarah could see that her hands were shaking.

“Of course, I understand Robert. Hopefully this poor little ...”

She left her sentence hanging and Robert leaned over to kiss her on the forehead.

“We will do our best, I promise. Make sure the servants check that all the doors and windows are locked. (He paused.) Maybe it would be best if you all sleep together in the same room ? At least for this night ?”

Sarah saw Cecilia frown.

“It is out of question that I sleep under these conditions ! It's ridiculous, I'm no longer a child and I prefer my own room thank you very much !”

Frowning, Robert turned to her but Hans spoke first.

“This is not a suggestion,” he said in an icy voice, grabbing her by the arm. “You will sleep with the others.”

Eyes wide open, Sarah stared at Hans in surprise. It was the first time she ever heard Hans raising his voice against Cecilia. Her face blushing, she opened her mouth to protest, but when she saw Hans's expression, she pulled herself together.

"Okay," she mumbled, looking down.

Resuming his affable look, Hans kissed her gently on the mouth before whispering something in her ear that seemed to soften Cecilia. Behind Hans, Sarah saw Toby make a face and she winked at him. Toby stifled a giggle.

"Gentlemen," said Uncle Drosselmeyer. “You can leave without cause for concern. Even if I am no longer a young man, I will be in the room next door, my door open, ready to use my cane at the slightest suspicious noise. (He smiles.) My insomnia will finally serve a noble cause.”

Irene looked relieved, and after Robert warmly thanked him, Hans and he accepted from Jesper a lantern and set off on foot in the dark night. Stepping out, Sarah watched them walking away, the snow quickly making their silhouettes disappear on the horizon. Behind her, she could hear the worried whispers of the servants, Irene's attempts to reassure them but it was as if a leaden weight had fallen on the house.

“Sarah,” called Irene. “Come inside, would you ? You're going to catch a cold.”

Nodding, Sarah was about to go back inside when she saw something behind the gate in the distance. She narrowed her eyes but didn't move. With the snow, she had trouble seeing, but she could have sworn that someone ...

“Sarah ?”

Irene put her hand on her shoulder and Sarah turned around.

“Are you well ?”

_I don’t know anymore._

“Of course,” Sarah lied with a smile.

Irene took her in her arms.

“Don't worry, I'm sure everything will be fine.”

Sarah nodded but said nothing. Behind Irene, she could see the servants all around Toby : Jesper touched his shoulder, Uncle Drosselmeyer ruffled his hair, a servant gave him a treat. Even Cecilia didn’t move away from him. Instinctively, they never took their eyes off him, as if they were afraid that he would evaporate if they blinked.

As if it hadn’t happened before.

Releasing her, Irene stroked her cheek before returning to Toby and the others. Taking a last look outside, Sarah closed the door and went upstairs with the others to get ready to go to bed. Once in her nightgown, she took advantage of the commotion of the servants who had to refurbish her parents' room to slip away and go find Uncle Drosselmeyer.

She found him in the kitchen on the ground floor talking to the cook while two commis were busy not far from them. They all turned to face her when she entered the room.

“What is happening ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer smiled at her but she could see the worry lines on his forehead.

“I was looking with Madame Gisèle if we could not take more precaution with our current problem.”

He pulled away and Sarah saw that the two commis had started collecting different plants on the table behind him.

Sarah approached and took a branch decorated with small red fruits.

“Rowan ?”

Madame Gisèle nodded, rubbing her hands.

“And we also have fresh gorse flowers, dried St. John's wort and bread of course.”

"And I sent little Rolf to get a bag of coarse salt from the cellar," added Uncle Drosselmeyer in a perky voice.

Sarah sighed but she couldn't help smiling at his satisfied look. Uncle Drosselmeyer had never been the type to leave things to chance and if many would have found a rifle or saber more reassuring, Sarah knew that if it were **him** , mortal weapons would be useless. If she was not convinced about the rest, she at least knew that the rowan worked well.

Very well even.

“Do you need help ?” asked Sarah.

Everything to postpone the moment when she should go to bed ... When she would find herself alone with her thoughts.

Uncle Drosselmeyer nodded, easily guessing her dilemma.

“Yes gladly Sarah.”

Without wasting time, they shared the different tasks. While Madame Gisèle was laying slices of bread on all the sills of the windows, Uncle Drosselmeyer was busy putting gorse flowers with one of the commis while Sarah and the other commis were attaching rowan branches everywhere. After learning what they were doing, Jesper had proposed with two servants to fill small handkerchiefs with coarse salt before distributing them to the whole household.

Beginning in the dining room, Sarah approached the large windows and drew back the curtains. Taking a branch of rowan, she tied it with a rope so that it blocked the two panels of the first window. She repeated the same pattern over and over until each window was adorned with its own rowan branch.

Going to the next room, she froze. Someone had left all the windows in the room wide open and the lamps and the fireplace were extinguished. Sarah frowned. It was not normal, especially with the disappearance of Eugenie. Advancing quietly, Sarah approached the windows to close them when suddenly she tripped over something. The branches of rowan slipped from her grasp but she barely saved herself by grabbing a chair. Cursing in a low voice, she turned around and looked down at the floor to find what had almost brought her down. Once her eyes had adjusted to the darkness, she saw a shape on the ground and ... Her blood froze and as in a dream, she lowered herself to pick up the nutcracker. He was strangely warm to the touch and in the semi-darkness, he almost looked ... Alive ?

_No !_

She dropped him on the floor and stepped back a few steps. He should have been stored in his locked box, out of sight in the library. She had seen with her own eyes a servant taking him after the little girl was announced missing. There was no way she would have left him there, especially on the floor ...

For a moment, she was tempted to pick him up and throw him in the nearest fireplace, but she did not move.

Because it could kill him.

Because it could release him.

Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to go back to the nutcracker to pick him up again. Sarah was more than aware of her vulnerability, alone in the room in a satin nightgown with him ... A shiver ran up her spine and she clenched her teeth.

_Never again !_

Raising her chin, she looked around until her gaze fell on an object that had been left abandoned not far from the big tree.

For the first time in a long time, a mischievous smile appeared on her lips and a few minutes later, the nutcracker was lying in a pretty pram with a little nightcap and a soft pale pink blanket.

"There," she whispered, leaning over him. “You have no power over me. Never !”

For a moment, it seemed to her that the nutcracker was going to answer her or stand up to take revenge for the humiliation he suffered.

A nervous laugh escaped from her.

But no, the nutcracker remained a prisoner of his wooden body and Sarah resumed her task, a small smile on her lips.

She didn’t see anyone.

Neither the small shapes hidden behind the ornaments of the fir tree, watching her.

Nor the silhouette of the man behind the window, smiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, I know that I had promised before Sunday more than a fortnight ago ... But I always find excuses for not writing / translating my fanfiction x)
> 
> TRALALALA SUSPENSE =D Children missing, mysterious shadows in the corner of the eye and a certain nutcracker who begins to get comfortable ... Well okay maybe not at the end xD (Sarah is going to be in big troubles ... we all know that a certain king of goblins is rather vindictive =))
> 
> Thank you for all those who encouraged me with their comments and their kudos <3
> 
> PS : I promised the next chapter will come faster ... Well I hope anyway xD


	4. No glittering powder

Sarah couldn't sleep. Lying on the makeshift bed that the servants had installed in her parents' room, she could hear Toby snoring and Cecilia turning in her bed. If their relationship had not been what it was, she would probably have joined her in her bed to reassure her, but in this case ...

She continued to stare into the darkness, eyes wide open until Toby's snoring died down and Cecilia stopped. She held in one hand the sachet of coarse salt that Jesper had given to her and in the other a branch of rowan sharpen into a point that Uncle Drosselmeyer had slipped into her hand before she joined the others upstairs.

Ten years had passed.

Ten long years and yet it’s like it was yesterday.

Before going to bed, Uncle Drosselmeyer had tried to reassure her by telling her that he had locked the nutcracker in his crate. Sarah smiled and thanked him, but she was not reassured.

She had heard the servants talking to each other. No glittering powder was found on the floor of the Shultz's house, in Eugenie's room, or elsewhere. No crystal orb had been found on the edge of the window or in her bed.

But that didn't mean anything.

It was him.

It had to be him ...

Sarah sighed and turned in her bed to face the window.

What if it wasn't him ? What if there was a new Goblin King in the Underground ? She wasn't sure it was possible as He was still alive, but the thought of another goblin king made her  stomach tied in knots .

Frowning, she turned the other way.

If there was a second goblin king, she didn't want to meet him. Once was enough thank you !

Immersed in hypotheses and speculations, Sarah ends up falling asleep without realizing it.

But deep in the night, in her most intimate dreams, memories awaited her.

  
  


_ Rushing down the street, Sarah felt like she had lost her mind. _

_ It was not possible. _

_ It was not real. _

_ Hugging Toby a little tighter, she turned right and continued to run. She ignored the puzzled looks of the few passers-by whom she saw. She ignored the tears that ran down her cheeks. She ignored the cold wind rushing through her nightgown. She ignored Toby who was too silent. She ignored her fatigue and fear to focus on her goal. _

_ She couldn't fail. _

_ Not now. _

_ Not after defeating him. _

_ All her childhood, she had been lulled by legends around the terrible king of goblins. For centuries, the ancients had told by the fireside how he kidnapped unwise children, unwanted children, disobedient children. Everyone knew that one wish was enough, one little wish and the child disappeared, abducted by horrible goblins who took him to the depths of the earth. _

_ But in Hamelin and in the neighboring villages, it was not a legend. There was always someone who knew a family ... fractured. A family that had toys but no children. A family of which one of its members had a strange look, lost in the distance. A family watched by passersby with a mixture of fear and pity. Because everyone knew that once the wish was made, it was too late. Unless the person wanted to challenge Him ... But those who came back from Underground were never the same again and it was useless anyway. No one ever passed the test. _

_ No one until Sarah. _

_**You have no power over me !** _

_ Sarah stumbled, but quickly recovered, and two blocks away, she eventually slowed down in front of a small shop whose window was filled with delicate wooden toys painted in bright colors and automates each more sophisticated than the other. Sarah took a deep breath and, with a shaky hand, pushed open the front door. A chime rang and Sarah started. _

“ _Just a minute, I'm coming.”_

_ Ignoring her uncle's muffled voice, Sarah sank deeper into the bowels of the store until she reached a small door ajar. Pushing it with her foot, she crossed the threshold and came face to face with Uncle Drosselmeyer. _

_ Eyes wide, he froze. _

“ _Sarah what ...”_

_ Trembling, she interrupted him. _

“ _I need help.”_

_ Uncle Drosselmeyer frowned. _

“ _Sarah but what happened to you ? You're frozen ! And your clothes? (He saw Toby in her arms.) Who is this ...”_

_ He stopped suddenly and his face lost all color. _

“ _Toby ? (Slowly, he reached out to Sarah and gently took the baby from her.) My god Toby but ...”_

_ He looked up, horrified. _

_ Sarah burst into tears. _

“ _I'm sorry, so sorry ! I didn’t want to do it ! I was selfish, so selfish and now he's coming for us ! He will never leave us alone ! We must help !”_

_ Rocking Toby, who had started to whine upon hearing his sister's panicked voice, Uncle Drosselmeyer looked at her without understanding. _

“ _He will be back ?”_

_**Sweet and golden promises floating in the air** _

_**Promises of love and eternal life ...** _

_**Accompanied by an icy look and a predatory smile.** _

_ Wiping her tears with her sleeve, she sniffed and looked up. _

“ _I couldn't let him do it. (She took a deep breath.) Uncle, I beat the goblin king.”_

  
  


Sarah woke up with a start, disoriented. It had been a while since she had dreamed of her return to the surface with Toby, unlike the Underground which regularly haunted her dreams just like her master.

Turning the other way, she took a deep breath before freezing, her heart racing. There were like sounds of ...

_ Tap tap tap. _

Short of breath, she forced herself to stand still and listen carefully. The minutes passed slowly but Sarah couldn't hear anything. Yet ... She could have sworn that she was not alone, that there was someone else in the room apart from her family.

Standing slowly, she held the branch of rowan firmly in her hand and slipped out of her makeshift bed.

_ Tap tap tap. _

She turned around suddenly and let out a little cry of fear. Someone was standing in front of the window, someone tall, threatening and who should never have been there.

“Good evening dear champion of the Labyrinth.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made the promise following the challenge started by ViciouslyWitty on the LFFL group to write two new chapters before the end of the confinement (around April 5 at the time even if in France, we are starting to consider May ... ) so here is the first chapter with a glimpse of the past ... And a mysterious nocturnal visitor =)
> 
> I hope you are all well as well as your families and friends and that confinement is not too hard for you ...  
> It's been a week since I have been confined and if for the moment it is fine, it is mainly because I have stopped watching the news that I find more anxiety-provoking than useful ...  
> I read a lot of fantasy (reread of the Dark Protectors series by Rebecca Zanetti), I started to learn Russian, I listen to music (mostly the Celtic Woman), I watch Arte documentaries (on viking warrior women for example ) and I take the opportunity to draw more things in my Bullet Journal ...
> 
> I know that for some, the situation must be difficult / stressful so I hope that this update will take your mind off things ...  
> The next chapter soon !
> 
> Stay safe <3


	5. Soft and sweet

For a moment, Sarah thought she was still asleep, that it was just a nightmare. Or worse, that she was awake and he had freed himself. But it was not his voice, and the icy wind rushing through the open window in front of her was very real. It wasn’t him, but at this point Sarah would have preferred to confront him rather than the threatening stranger who had invited himself into the room.

Her heart pounding, she slowly moved away from her bed, without sudden gesture, to come and place herself between him and the rest of her family. The stranger never took his eyes off her. He was tall, taller than her father, with an angular face, short dark tousled hair and eyes ... Sarah inhaled suddenly and he began to walk forward, smiling. His eyes were completely black and his teeth seemed sharper than those of a normal human. He wore clothes that looked more like rags than clothes but strangely, his head was adorned with an elegant twisted crown made of black metal that seemed to absorb light. He also held in his left hand a sort of long crooked scepter made of greyish wood and obsidian stone that reached his shoulder.

“Who are you ?” she asked in a trembling voice.

Instead of answering her, he continued to walk towards her with a hopping gait that made Sarah want to throw something in his face before running away. But she couldn't leave her family helpless. Despite the cold and the noise, no one in the room had woken up. Worse, when Sarah had screamed, her voice had sounded loud enough to alert a servant or at least Uncle Drosselmeyer in the next room. However, no one had come and, seeing the stranger's smug smile, Sarah feared she know why. Once again she found herself alone in the face of danger. A shiver ran through her, followed by a wave of anger.

_I survived the Labyrinth and Him ! It is out of the question that I let this ... This rat take my power from me !_

As the stranger walked around the bed to approach her, she straightened up and, looking him straight in the eye, tightened her grip on the branch of rowan before lifting it up in front of her in a defensive gesture. The stranger's eyes began to glow briefly but he stopped out of reach of the rowan and Sarah forced herself to not back away. She bitterly regretted not having her little package of coarse salt, but she heard it fall to the ground when she got up and she didn't dare to stoop down to pick it up. A t least she had her rowan branch left and seeing the stranger’s reaction, it looked effective.

“You're not welcome here,” she said in a loud, clear voice. “Get out of here !”

The stranger tilted his head to the side.

“You're much smaller than I imagined.”

Shivering with cold, Sarah remained silent.

“And your skin … your so white skin. (He leaned in and took a deep breath.) I bet it is so soft and sweet.”

Suppressing a shudder of disgust, Sarah tightened her grip on the rowan branch and glanced towards the door.

“No no no,” sang the stranger, stepping back. “There's no point in trying to run away, I'm not here to ... (He stopped suddenly and pretended to think.) I'm not here tonight to kill you.”

He seemed particularly pleased with the wording of his sentence and Sarah wondered if he would come ba ck another night to kill her.

“Then why are you here ?”

He bowed down before standing up with a smile.

“I am the Mausekönig and I am here to help you my dearest champion of the Labyrinth.”

Sarah frowned. The mouse king ? That could explain the crown and the eyes… But she had never heard of a mouse king and thinking of her last contact with a monarch, his royal status didn’t reassure her at all.

“Your help for what ?”

He spread his arms.

“Well to get rid of the former king once and for all !”

Sarah turned pale but remained silent. No one knew about the Goblin king, no one except her uncle ! But he said ...

“The former king ?“

The Mausekönig smiled at her.

“The Underground sovereign, the master of the Labyrinth, the dark lord of dreams, the guardian of the lost children. (He paused slightly and a red flash passed in his eyes.) The former king who was beaten at his own game by an ordinary girl (Staring at her without blinking, he continued whispering.) Not so little now isn't it ?”

Making a face she thought was threatening, Sarah raised the branch higher and the Mausekönig sneered.

“It will not be necessary, I know that your ... Will is as strong as mine.”

_A labyrinth of stones and tricks_

_Such a cruel look._

_Himself dressed all in white._

The branch she was holding trembled slightly.

"The king is no longer there, but he is still there," said the Mausekönig, watching her reaction. “The Labyrinth is less powerful and it badly needs a new master. But he also knows that his former master will eventually return ... Unless someone stops him.”

Her arm was starting to hurt and she couldn't stop the slight tremors that were shaking her but Sarah felt that if she let go of the branch, something horrible would happen. She didn’t trust the Mausekönig and with her vulnerable family behind her, she could not afford it. What if he was lying ? What if he was there to help him escape ?

_What if he told the truth but she opened the door to a monster even worse than the previous one ?_

_What if the goblins killed him or her family to avenge his death ?_

In the Labyrinth, Sarah had a goal, a mission, and there were rules she knew by heart. But here in her room in the darkest hour of the night with a king with sharp teeth who looked at her maliciously ...

"I don't know where he is," lied Sarah. “Now go away !”

The Mausekönig shook his head.

"Liar liar," he said with a smile. “I know that you have the king and that you protect him …”

“I'm not protecting him !” cried Sarah, offended.

The Mausekönig's smile widens.

“So let me help you,” he whispered as he approached her, gently moving aside the branch of the mountain ash with his scepter. “And you can go back to your little dresses and your marrons glacés.”

Sarah opened her mouth to answer when someone  appeared between her and the Mausekönig.

“Stop there scoundrel !” cried Sir Didymus, a sword pointed straight at the Mausekönig's chest. “This young lady is under my protection !”

Eyes wide open, Sarah stared at him without understand. Didymus, her dear friend Didymus, always there to defend her ! She hadn't seen him in ten years and almost forgot about him but he was still the same ... Well looking closer, she noticed that he was taller and perhaps more threatening than in her memory. In fact, he seemed ready to gut the Mausekönig whose mouth had twisted in an angry grin.

"The one-eyed little poodle," he spat. “I should have expected you would be here.”

Didymus pushed Sarah behind him and took a threatening step.

“Your insults will get you nowhere ! Leave before I cut your poor rat carcass into slices !”

His eyes lighted briefly and for a moment Sarah thought he was going to attack but he recovered and met her gaze.

“It looked like I have to leave,” he said making a mocking curtsy. “But I will come back and my sweet sweet Sarah, if you don't want your adorable little brother to end up devoured, I advise you to give me what I want …”

Inspired by a look she had seen Cecilia use so many times, Sarah raised an eyebrow in a regal manner but said nothing.

The Mausekönig showed his teeth and suddenly the room darkened. A second later, he was gone.

Sarah heaved a sigh of relief and her legs sagging, she fell on her bed.

“Sarah are you okay ?” asked Didymus while putting away his sword.

He went to sit next to her and yelped when Sarah threw herself into his arms.

“Oh Didymus thank you thank you so very much. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't arrived !”

Visibly uncomfortable, he patted her back gently.

“It's nothing my dear, really.”

Stepping back, Sarah looked at him.

“What's going on Didymus ? How did you know I was in danger ?”

Didymus sighed.

“The goblins warned me that they could no longer move around the household and that the mirrors in this room were closed to them. (He shrugged.) I immediately understood the danger.”

Sarah was relieved to be confirmed that the measures they had taken had worked except that ...

“Who is the Mausekönig ? How can I keep him from coming back ?”

Didymus shook his head sadly.

“I don't know, he doesn't come from the Underground even if he and his subjects have been roaming along the border of the Labyrinth for several years now. (He looked Sarah right in the eye.) I only know of one way to keep him from coming back ...”

He didn’t elaborate but Sarah understood what he didn’t say.

Either she found a way to get rid of the Mausekönig on her own or she will have to call on Him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is the second chapter promised before the end of confinement (even if I think that confinement will probably last longer ...)
> 
> One of my favorite characters in The Nutcracker is the Mausekönig :  
> \- in the tale of Hoffmann, it is a menacing character with 7 heads who has an old dispute with the Nutcracker (which is responsible for the death of his mother) but also an obsession for the sugar figurines of Marie  
> \- in the ballet which is inspired by the version of Dumas, it has a much less important role and is defeated thanks to the slipper of Clara =D
> 
> I used more the Hoffmann's version (book and German TV movie) for my fanfiction while adding other elements inspired by other German fairy tales ... You'll see it soon =)
> 
> I hope you are all well and that the confinement is not too hard for you ... It's time to embark on projects (learning a new language or writing in a new fandom ...) or read this book that has been gathering dust for several years in your shelves =D
> 
> Feel free to comment to give me your impressions =D


	6. Mossy gravestones

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can be read while listening to The Curse by Agnes Obel =)

After Didymus left, Sarah hadn't slept much. What Didymus had said echoed in her head as did the threats from the Mausekönig. She couldn't afford to make the slightest misstep. As the sun has barely risen, Sarah didn't wait for the others to get up and slipped out of the bedroom on tiptoe. She was exhausted but more determined than ever.

  
Sarah didn't know whether or not He was responsible for the little girl's disappearance or whether the Mausekönig was one of his new tricks to manipulate her or escape, but He was her prisoner, not the Mausekönig's. If he wanted Him that much, he was going to have to do better than threats in the middle of the night.  
And, Sarah was preparing a little surprise for him.

  
After all, it wasn't the first time that she got rid of a king.

* * *

_She was standing motionless at the edge of the pond at the back of her father's property. It was pitch black but the sky was clear and the moon's rays cast a wan light over the place. Each rustle in the bushes, each crackle of branches took a sinister meaning. There was no wind, only snow that had been falling gently for a few minutes already, but yet it seemed to Sarah that the trees were whispering between them. Or maybe it wasn't the trees whispering ..._

  
_Sarah slowly approached the pond to observe her reflection in the water. The girl ... No, the woman staring back at her seemed almost ch_ _imerical. She was wearing a long black dress with short puffed sleeves that she had borrowed from her mother-in-law. She had left the corset and the gloves in her wardrobe, both being too big for her. She had thought about styling her hair with a fancy updo and sleek curls like she had seen Irene do so many times, but she finally decided to keep her face bare and her hair down. The time for vanities was over._

  
_When the church struck the stroke of midnight, a supernatural silence fell over the garden. Nature itself seemed to be holding its breath. Suddenly Sarah knew she was not alone. She stiffened but did not turn around._

  
_“Did you think it would be so easy Precious ?”_

  
_She shuddered at hearing his voice, the same caressing and a bit mocking voice. Taking a deep breath, she spun around. There he was, dressed like the dark king he was : a regal costume, elegant and refined but close to the body and which left little or nothing to the imagination. Dressed all in black like this, his face and especially his inhuman eyes which had so fascinated Sarah stood out all the more in the half-light, just like the delicate silver crown of volutes and dreams that he wore on his forehead as well as the long cloak made of silver feathers on his shoulders._

  
_Sarah suddenly realized that as she watched him, he looked frozen, as if time itself had stood still. She straightened up to meet his gaze and seeing his expression, Sarah took a step back. Her gesture seemed to pull him out of his torpor and his lips turned into a smile almost… Hungry._

  
_"Oh precious", he whispered, approaching slowly. “Indeed, you will always surprise me.”_

_For a moment, Sarah saw herself turning on her heel and running off to her father's house, to the light, to the heat and to the security. But the time when her father could sort out all her little ailments were over and she had to take responsibility. Above all, watching him come towards her like a hunting predator, she knew that running was in vain. He might let her touch the doorknob of the house, but he would never let her turn her back on him like that._

_So Sarah swallowed her fears, folded her arms, and held her gaze until he was only inches from her._

_“So many possibilities”, he breathed, leaning towards her._

_Watching her reactions intently, he put his hand on her bare arm before slowly moving up her arm to her shoulder. He stroked her hair before pulling it aside so that he could access her neck which he brushed with the tips of his fingers before following the path of her jugular vein to her chin which he took delicately between his fingers, giving her plenty of time to pull out if she wanted to. Sarah was shaking but she didn't move. His hands were completely covered by gloves as soft as silk but as cold as ice. His two-colored eyes stared at her, hypnotic, inhuman in their coldness, but there was also something terribly human about the hunger she saw there._

_Sensing that she wouldn't last any longer, Sarah stood on tip-toe, closed her eyes, and kissed him. The kiss only lasted an instant but Sarah knew she would never forget her lips, sweet and strangely warm. When she opened her eyes again, she saw that the Goblin King looked petrified, the expression on his face reflecting confusion and perhaps also… wonder ?_

_Confused, Sarah took a step back but it was as if a spell had been broken. Before her eyes, the Goblin King turned back into the monster she had faced before : his gaze was triumphant, his smile cruel and he grabbed her by the arm to pull her towards him._

_“Oh precious, you shouldn't have ...”_

_But he didn't have time to finish his sentence. He let go of Sarah abruptly and she took the opportunity to put a certain distance between her and the king. But he paid her no attention, too busy touching his lips and then his face. He snapped off his gloves before lifting his hands up to look at them in horror._

_“How …”_

_He slowly turned his head towards Sarah, who was standing straight without taking her eyes off him._

_If she had to be honest with herself, she had not been entirely convinced by the solution proposed by Uncle Drosselmeyer. But she had been desperate and her uncle had never disappointed her so far so she had helped him prepare the ointment in her workshop, a mixture of beeswax, small starry white flowers and bluish powder. It was a recipe he had discovered on one of his trips in the North, where fjords were haunted and bright nights lasted for months. It was harmless to humans but to the little people …_

_So, on the way home, Sarah had hatched a plan, a plan which was far from infallible but which, if it succeeded, could ensured the safety of all the inhabitants of Hamelin. And when she had finished preparing to face him, she had carefully coated her lips with the magic ointment. Her uncle had been very clear : the ointment would only be effective if it came into contact with the king's bare skin …_

_And against all odds, it had worked._

_“You have no power over me”, she said in a loud, clear voice. “Neither on my city. It’s over and now we’ll be safe from you !”_

_She expected him to be furious, even for him to try to kill her but the Goblin King looked at her silently and then a smile slowly crept across his face, a smile full of pride which frightened Sarah more than anything she had seen tonight. But before she had a chance to say or do anything, the terrifying Goblin King began to change before her astonished eyes. His skin so white began to turn brown, his limbs to stiffen, his features to freeze ... Loud crackles echoed in the night like gunshots and little by little, He began to shrink and shrink ..._

_Until in place of the creature that terrified Sarah so much, only a harmless nutcracker remains._

* * *

In the Williams household, everyone was still sleeping. After washing and dressing in warm clothes, Sarah left to check if her father was back home but a servant confirmed that it was not the case. Knowing that she wouldn't be able to get a chance like that anytime soon, Sarah thanked the servant and hurried down to the kitchen. There, the servants were already scrambling to make the food even though there was still some tension in the air.

When she saw her, Madame Gisèle looked worried.

"Miss Sarah," she said, walking towards her. “It is still early ! Is there a problem ?”

Sarah shook her head and reassured her with a smile.

“Not at all, I just came to collect some salt.”

A maid next to her started to open her mouth, but the cook motioned for her to be quiet before indicating to Sarah a large bag on the side.

“Go on miss, you can help yourself.”

Sarah thanked her and began to fill her coat pockets with coarse salt. She also picked up several rowan branches that someone had left beside the bag. After the events of that night, Sarah did not want to take unnecessary risks.

As she got ready to leave the kitchen, Sarah turned to face Madame Gisele.

“Have you heard anything about the missing child ?”

Madame Gisèle shook her head in distress.

“No news, I'm afraid, miss. The mayor's butler came by this morning to tell us that the research was continuing and (She gave her a pointed look.) that we had to keep being careful.”

Ignoring the thinly disguised warning, Sarah thanked her once again before leaving the kitchen. She went straight upstairs and made her way to the attic where she knew Uncle Drosselmeyer had stored the wooden crate He was in. It didn't take long for her to find the pretty, ornate rowan wood crate among the large, dusty crates filled with old clothes, ancient toys and nostalgia.

Yet Sarah hesitated for a moment before taking the box. Years of waiting for something to happen, years of dreading winters and murmurs late at night and today ...

She shook her head and bent down to pick up the box. She had no choice, the Goblin King was no longer safe here and after what happened yesterday, someone had to do something.

And that someone was her.

After making sure she had everything she needed, Sarah hurried out of the house. Outside, the day had barely risen and the air still carried the humidity and coolness of the night. There was hardly anyone in the streets of Hamelin, and the few locals Sarah passed looked nervous and walked briskly.

As she passed the church square, a man stopped her, one of the baker's apprentices who regularly came to deliver bread to the Williams'.

"Miss", he said. “Have you heard the news ?”

“What news ?”

He leaned towards her.

"Little Shultz has still not been found”, he announced to her with an air of importance. “But they found some clues.”

Sarah frowned.

“Clues ?”

The apprentice nodded.

“The men allegedly discovered footprints and one of the ribbons the little one wore in her hair in the forest.”

Confused, Sarah shook her head.

“But we never found a clue before !”

The apprentice nodded.

“Maybe it's not Him ... But I would have liked it better.”

Sarah stared at him as if he had lost his mind.

“Excuse me ?”

The apprentice blushed slightly.

“Well, with Him, we knew what to expect at least ...”

Disturbed, Sarah paid him goodbye absently and resumed her journey, hugging the box hard against her chest. Something was wrong with this disappearance. She knew it couldn't be the Goblin King but even if he was involved, he never left any clue before. He didn't need it, everyone knew what a disappearance meant. But if it wasn't him, then who ?

Deep in thought, Sarah kept walking and finally left the village. A few snowflakes started to fall and Sarah picked up her pace. The road she followed was hardly used : it was isolated, muddy, sinuous, and skirted a part of the forest where the nights seemed longer and the trees more alive. Sarah scrupulously kept her eyes on the path beneath her feet, ignoring the whispers that escaped from the forest. A few minutes later, she finally arrived at the entrance to the old Hamelin cemetery.

Set in a clearing on the edge of the forest, Hamelin cemetery was a special place. People passing through thought it had been abandoned, but in reality it had still been in operation for several centuries now. It was just that the forest had claimed it and the village priest had long ago decided that it was easier to live with the forest than against the forest. So he had abandoned the idea of a stone enclosure around the cemetery and a funeral church. He was content to ensure the smooth running of the funeral ceremonies there and above all, he ignored the lights which were visible from the church steeple on certain nights.

Careful not to trip over the dark roots of the trees, Sarah plunged a little deeper into the cemetery. The damp ground sagged beneath her feet, and she had to turn back several times to avoid the mossy gravestones that seemed to lean more toward each other over the years. With the surrounding cold, most of the statues and burial monuments that were not covered with moss and lichen were white with frost. Everything was silent and with the shadow of the tall trees surrounding it, it almost seemed like night. Yet Sarah was not afraid. The cemetery and the forest had never worried her : she had spent too much time there when Oma Adelheid had passed away, watching the squirrels bickering and the rain falling. Heading towards the back of the cemetery where the oldest graves were to be found, she stopped in front of the large family funeral chapel, an imposing dark stone burial monument.

She pushed the gate, which opened with a sinister creak before entering. Inside it was cold and humid and the only source of light was from a small skylight above the door. But Sarah didn't need the light to find her way there and she went straight to her grandmother's stone sarcophagus. Putting the box containing the nutcracker on the floor, she took off her gloves and pushed the lid of the sarcophagus with all her might to reveal an opening just large enough for the nutcracker.  
Checking that no one was there, she wiped her hands on her coat before picking up the box from the floor to open it. Inside, the nutcracker was still there, but in the half-light of the vault, he seemed to be sparkling slightly.

Sarah took it and held it straight in front of her.

“This is your new home until this matter is settled. Don't worry, you won't be alone. Oma will be there to watch you.”

Around her, the shadows suddenly grew darker and Sarah felt like the temperature had suddenly dropped. Before she changed her mind, Sarah got up on her tiptoes and placed the nutcracker in the sarcophagus next to her grandmother's skeleton. She added the rowan branches inside but after hesitating, she decided to keep the salt with her. Then it took about ten minutes for her to put the heavy sarcophagus lid back on and when she was done, Sarah was dripping with sweat. Out of breath, she picked up the empty crate and her gloves and after checking that everything was in place, she left the chapel. But as she was about to step through the front door, she heard a rustling sound behind her. Heart pounding, she turned and saw that vines had started to grow on the sarcophagus to form like a protective cocoon around it … Or a plant prison.

Sarah smiled and tilted her head slightly in the direction of the plants, whispering thanks before leaving. Outside snow was falling more and more and Sarah hurried out of the cemetery. The rest of her family must be awake by now and even though Madame Gisele must have informed them that Sarah had left early this morning, she didn't want to delay too long and risk worrying them.

She had almost reached the entrance of the village when she saw in the distance a man who seemed to come from the valley. Despite the cold and the snow, he walked without hurrying, whistling a catchy tune. Sarah didn’t recognize him and she was almost sure it wasn’t someone from the village : she wouldn’t have forgotten such colorful clothes. With his lilac and garish yellow coat, red and white striped breeches, crimson hat and green boots soiled with road mud, he looked ridiculous but something about him made Sarah slow down to observe him more carefully. He was carrying a large canvas bag on his back and when he arrived near her, she saw that he was barely older than her and that he had a gracious, though ordinary face.

“Excuse me”, he said, lifting his hat. “Could you help me ?”

Sarah nodded silently.

“Could you tell me if I am on the right road to Hamelin ?”

“You are almost there”, Sarah replied, showing him the village in front of her. “This is Hamelin.”

The stranger rubbed his hands.

“Perfect, thank you miss.”

Nodding, Sarah was about to leave him when he called out to her.

“Miss, do you live there by chance ?”

“Yes”, she replied. “Now, if you'll excuse me, I ...”

He cut her off.

“I heard that the village has been in some trouble recently ... is that true ?”

Sarah stiffened.

“Why do you want to know ?”

The stranger shrugged his shoulders casually.

"News travels fast", he said nonchalantly. “And I think I could be able to help you !”

Sarah looked at him suspiciously.

“Really ?”

The stranger nodded vigorously.

“Yes, I have some experience with missing children.”

Sarah raised an eyebrow but said nothing. She tried not to judge people too quickly but something about this stranger made her uncomfortable.  
Perhaps it was the recent events that made her paranoid.

Or maybe it was the way he looked so excited that a child had gone missing.

"Maybe you've heard of me before", the stranger continued, ignoring the disapproval on Sarah's face. “My name is Pierre. (He held out his hand to her. Pierre the Pied Piper.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TADA ! Things are starting to get serious for Sarah ...
> 
> Sorry for the delay, this fanfiction is first and foremost a Christmas creature so it will mostly be updated around Christmas when it's cold and my apartment smells of cinnamon and chocolate !
> 
> The cemetery that I describe as well as the vault is more or less inspired by the old cemetery near my parents' house in Auvergne (I spent some time there when I had to do research on the symbolism of tombstones).
> 
> I hope you are doing well and that 2020 has not been too tough for you ...  
> Don't forget to remain masked =)  
> (great opportunity to show off your inner geek with Tolkien, Dr Who or just cute masks !)


	7. Mistletoe and ivy garlands

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A chapter of transition =)

After she explained to the piper how to find the mayor's house, Sarah hurried back home. The sun was already high in the sky and she knew she was late. This was confirmed when Reginald the butler opened the door for her before she had even time to touch the handle.  


“Miss Sarah !” he exclaimed with a relieved look. “There you are ! Everyone was very worried !”  


Sarah winced.  


“I'm sorry, I needed to… get some fresh air to clear my mind ?”  


Reginald regarded her with open skepticism, but before he had time to question her, Irene appeared behind him.  


"My god Sarah," she cried, pushing Reginald aside to hug her. “Where have you been ? Your father and I were so worried !”  


“Dad is home ?” she asked her once she let her go.  


Irene pushed her inside as Reginald closed the door behind her.  


"He has just come back," Irene replied. “But don't try to…” (She paused when she saw Sarah's outfit.) “What are you doing with this case ? What about your coat ? It's covered in dust and cobwebs !”  


Sarah put on a remorseful expression.  


"I went to Uncle Drosselmeyer's workshop to retrieve the box," she lied, praying that Irene would attribute the blush on her face to the cold. “He needed it and you know the state of his workshop ...”  


Helping her remove her coat, Irene shook her head before taking the box from her.  


“Yes of course but all the same, at the present moment ...”  


Sarah touched her arm.  


"I'm not a child anymore," she said in a small voice. “I don't risk anything.”  


Irene smiles at her.  


“Yes of course, you're right, it's just ... It's fine, come with me. Your father will be happy to see you before he leaves again.”  


Handing the coat to Reginald, she led her to the living room where the whole family had gathered. Like the rest of the house, the room was decorated with mistletoe and ivy garlands but also small holly wreaths decorated with pine cones and berries. Someone had also created small ornaments of woven straw and garlands of exotic spices and dried citrus fruits, the scent of which filled the room. Yet the atmosphere around the living room table was far from festive.  


“Sarah !” Toby cried, getting up from the table before running to throw himself into her arms. “You came back !”  


Sarah hugged him.  


“I'm sorry I left without saying anything. I had something urgent to do and I didn't want to wake you up.”  


Her father who had also risen from the table when she entered stepped forward.  


“What was so urgent that you got out on your own at dawn ?" Robert asked, frowning.  


Sarah opened her mouth to answer but Irene  beat her to it .  


“Apparently, your brother needed this  case right away.”  


Uncle Drosselmeyer, who was drinking a cup of coffee,  almost choked on it .  


“Really ?” Robert asked, turning to him. “I thought you didn't know where she went ?”  


Uncle Drosselmeyer took his time putting down his cup and wiping his lips.  


"I forgot I asked Sarah to do this little favor for me yesterday," he said, standing up to take the box from Irene's hand. “My memory is not what it used to be I'm afraid ...”  


Taking advantage of the fact that everyone was turning their backs on her, Sarah articulated a silent "I'm sorry" to h im .  


“What's in it ?” Toby asked, curious.  


Uncle  Drosselmeyer patted the lid with his fingertips.  


“A few things that might help us, but I won't say more for now.”  


Robert rubbed his forehead.  


“Well  fine ... Since everyone is here, let's not waste time. We have arranged with Hans and the others to meet here around noon and I will just have time to go freshen up and sleep an hour before they are here.”  


“Have you found  more about  the little girl ?” Sarah asked.  


Robert shook his head, annoyed.  


“No, only traces in the forest behind the Shultz house and ...”  


“And what else ?” Sarah asked.  


Robert massaged his temples.  


“Nothing, it's just that it's strange to find traces when before, there had never been anything. I wonder …”  


“What daddy ?” Toby asked.  


Pulling himself  together , Robert smiled at h im , stroking h im hair.  


“Nothing, it's nothing.”  


But Sarah knew what her father was thinking. The Goblin King had never left a  clue before so if it wasn't him, who was it? After all these years of peace, was there a new monster in Hamelin playing a cruel new game with them?  


“Go and rest my darling,” said Irene, taking him by the shoulders. “You are exhausted. I'll come get you when Hans and the others get back.”  


Robert nodded with a tired and worried  smile and after kissing Sarah and Toby each on the forehead, he followed Irene out of the room.

Back to the table, Toby picked up the painted wooden saber he had dropped beside his chair when Sarah arrived.

"I wish  Dad let me  participate to the research ," he sighed, picking  some caramelized almonds from the bowl. “I'm sure with my new saber, I could cut any enemy to pieces !”

Sarah rolled her eyes as she went to sit next to him.

“Of course ! Evil creatures just have to beware !

Toby stuck his tongue out at him as Uncle Drosselmeyer handed h er a mug of hot chocolate.

“So do you slept well ?”

Sarah gave him a sidelong glance. 

“It was a ... strange night. Didn't you hear anything last night ?”

Too busy playing with his saber and the little sugar figures that should have been used as decoration, Toby just shook his head but Uncle Drosselmeyer narrowed his eyes. 

“I didn't hear anything, why?”

Glancing over Toby's side to verify that he was too busy playing, Sarah leaned over to Uncle Drosselmeyer.

"I had an unusual visitor last night" she whispered before quickly recounting the Mausek ö nig's visit and threats.

H er Uncle's face turned pale.

“Oh Sarah, first the Goblin King, now this creature… I'm afraid this is all getting too dangerous for you. Maybe you should leave for a while, leave Hamelin ?”

Sarah shook her head.

“And leave you at his mercy ? It’s out of the question, we have to fight !”

Uncle Drosselmeyer rubbed his beard.

“Is that why you sneaked out of the house this morning ? What did you do with the nutcracker ?

Sarah took a sip of hot chocolate.

“I put him in a secure place far away. The house is no longer safe for him.” (She sighs.) “I don't know why the Mausekönig wants him or what he wants to do to him but I think it has to do with the Labyrinth. He spoke about it like it was alive. He said that the Goblin King was its master or at least the former master. But he also said that the Labyrinth knew its old master will come back … He can't come back like that, can he ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer patted her arm to reassure her.

“No, he can't. For that, he would have to break the spell in the manner of ancient tales.”

Sarah froz e.

“What do you mean ?”

“Only a sincere kiss could deliver him from his present condition.”

_ A freezing night in the garden. _

_ Soft and strangely hot lips.  _

B lushing slightly, Sarah finished drinking her  hot  chocolate to give herself time to put her thoughts in order. 

“Right, she said finally. “Maybe the Mausekönig wants something that is in the Labyrinth and maybe he needs the Goblin King for it ?

Uncle Drosselmeyer looked at her over his glasses.

“Maybe you should give him the nutcracker for him to leave you alone. Trade him in for his help in finding the little Shultz ?”

Sarah snorted disdainfully.

“I do not negotiate with kings, I only turn them into trinkets ! Besides, I'm not convinced by the disappearance of the child ... Maybe he's the one responsible ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer sighed. 

“Perhaps ...”

A fter checking that Toby was still playing, Sarah put down her cup and folded her arms. 

“Do you think we could stop him like we did with the Goblin King ?”

Uncle Drosselmeyer's forehead creased.

“I'm sorry, we can't. I've been out of Larvikite powder for years but I can check my travel diaries, there might be a way to ...”

He paused when he heard footsteps and conservation coming their way.

A second later, the living room door opened and Hans entered followed by Irene. It was the first time Sarah had seen him like this, dressed soberly and his features marked by stress and fatigue. "Sir, Sarah, Toby," he said, greeting them in turn before going to the end of the table. “What a night eh ?”

Irene hurried over to pour him a cup of coffee.

“Robert will not be long in getting down, as for Cecilia … Well she's still asleep but I can go get her if you want ?”

Hans accepted the cup of coffee with relief.

“It won't be necessary, I'll see her tonight. For now, I'm waiting for the other members of the city council. If you do not mind …”

Irene nodded. 

“Don't worry, as soon as they're here I'll send them to you. Toby, stop playing with your saber and come help me at the office instead. I need a second pair of hands !”

Grumbling, Toby nevertheless got up to follow Irene out of the room without letting go of his sword.

“Any news from the little one ?” asked Uncle Drosselmeyer.

Hans poured  himself a new cup of coffee.  


“None but ...”  


His answer was interrupted by the arrival of Reginald who had a strange expression on his face.  


“I apologize for disturbing you miss and gentlemen, but there is a … visitor who would like to see you.”  


Hans frowned.  


“A visitor ? Wh at does he want ?”  


Reginald pursed his lips.  


“He didn't say it sir, but if you w ant , I can send him away ?”  


Hans straightened up.  


“It won't be necessary, bring  him to me.”  


Reginald nodded and reappeared a few minutes later with a familiar figure  on his heels.  


"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen," the piper exclaimed, approaching Hans, his hand extended enthusiastically.  


With his eyes riveted on his colorful clothes, Hans ignored his outstretched hand and regarded him condescendingly.  


"Ah, my apologies for interrupting your lunch," the piper continued undeterred. “But I was told I could find you here ...”  


Having guessed that he was neither important nor rich, Hans  cut a slice of Stollen while dutifully ignoring him. For a moment, Sarah saw an expression of resentment and contempt passed on  the piper 's face before he turned to Sarah and Uncle Drosselmeyer, an almost genuine smile on his face.  


"Miss," he exclaimed, lifting his bright red hat briefly. “What a pleasure to see you again !  A ll my thanks  again for guiding me this far, I don't know what I would have done without you !”  


Sarah tilted her head slightly.  


“It's nothing.  Let me introduce you to Mr Drosselmeyer, my uncle and you apparently already know our mayor Mr Lehmann.”  


The  piper bows in an  exaggerated  manner .  


“Nice to meet you gentlemen. Again, I apologize for bothering you like this, but maybe you could give me a moment of your time ? I know  it is precious at the moment but maybe miss ...”  


Sarah sighed.  


“Sarah, my name is Sarah Williams.”  


The piper smiles widely.  


“ Maybe  Miss Sarah Williams told you about me ?”  


Hans and Uncle Drosselmeyer both turned toward her.  


“Sarah ?” Hans asked. “Do you know this  person ?”  


Seeing hope shining in  the piper 's eyes, Sarah resigned herself.  


"I met Pierre on the way to Hamelin this morning," Sarah explained. “He's  a piper and  apparently an… expert on missing children ?”  


“What do you mean ?” Hans asked suddenly interested.  


Pulling on his jacket which  clashed hideously with its complexion, Pierre assumed a deceptively modest air.  


“I ha d indeed the opportunity on several occasions to  bring my modest contribution to a number of cases of missing children.”  


Hans raised an eyebrow.  


“ And ?”  


Pierre gave him a honeyed smile.  


“Thanks to me, the children were all found safe and sound as soon as possible.”  


"For a fee, I guess," Uncle Drosselmeyer remarked casually.  


Pierre shrugged his shoulders.  


“Nothing extravagant when you consider the results.”  


Sarah doubted that h is "results" ever existed, but she remained silent. She knew Hans well enough to  recognize what the expression on his face meant. But before he had a chance to say anything, Sarah's dad walked into the room. He looked just as tired as ever, and seeing Pierre, he froze, mouth agape. Behind him, Sarah saw Toby open his eyes wide when he saw Peter's outfit.  


“What …”  


Sarah opened her mouth to answer but Hans beat her  on it .  


“Robert, this is ... Pierre, who was about to leave us.” (He raised an eyebrow in h is direction.) “ I think you know the way out ?”  


Losing his smile, Pierre turned to ward him.  


“But …”  


Hans cut him off.  


“No doubt your offer is ... tempting but the city council of which Mr. Williams and I are part has things  well in hand.”  


Taking advantage of the fact that his father was focused on Hans, Toby had crept into the room, his sword still in hand. Guessing what he was going to do, Sarah pulled him back just before he had time to prick Peter's scarlet hat with the tip of his saber.  


“But Sarah !” Toby protested. “ His very existence is a crime !”  


Hearing h is words, Pierre stiffened but when he turned back to Toby and Sarah, he still had the same affable look on his face.  


“My boy,” he whispered so that only Sarah and Toby could hear him. “You should be careful  with  what you say. Words have powers.”  


He had barely finished speaking when Sarah got up to come and stand between Toby and  him .  


"You should also be careful sir," she said softly, looking him straight in the eye. “Hamelin is a small isolated village and the forest is big …  It wouldn’t be good for  you to get lost on the way back, right ?”  


All smiles, the flute player nodded briefly in h er directio n as if to concede victory to h er before turning to ward the other people in the room who were looking at him with varying degrees of  distrust .  


“Miss it was a pleasure. Gentlemen, if you change your mind, I'll be at the Three Owls.”  


And after a last bow, he left the room.  


Once the door closed behind him, Robert walked over to Hans.  


“What a strange character … What did he want ?”  


Hans's mouth twitched in a contemptuous pout.  


“Apparently, he intended to help us find little Eugenie in return for payment of course ! What a vulture !”  


Robert frowned.  


"I'll send a letter to some of my acquaintances in neighboring towns this evening," Hans announced, standing up. “Under the current circumstances, it is safer to know who you are dealing with.”  


Reginald walked into the living roo m .  


“Gentlemen, I apologize, but the members of the city council have arrived. Madame has installed them in the library.”  


“Thank you Reginald,” said Robert. “We will join them immediately.”  


As soon as they left the room with Toby  on their heels, Uncle Drosselmeyer turned to ward Sarah.  


“For my part, I will consult my notebooks to try to find a way to counter this Mausekönig or at least protect  ourselves from  him . However ...”  


“However ?”  


Uncle Drosselmeyer frowned.  


“Can you describe little Shultz to me ?”  


Sarah scratched her head.  


“Small, blonde with curly hair and she has blue eyes I think ? Why ?”  


Uncle Drosselmeyer crossed his arms.  


“It's been over thirteen hours since she disappeared and yet you still remember her. Everyone remembers Eugenie. Everyone is looking for  her .”  


Sarah froze, her mouth parted.

She knew the rules better than anyone : she had lived all her life in Hamelin, she knew the families who had "lost" one of their members, she had met people who had lost  against Him and yet ...  


She had forgotten what it meant to solve the Labyrinth.  


She had forgotten the rules that everyone had to obey.  


Even the king.  


Especially the king.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One last update before Christmas (even if there should be at least another new chapter by Sunday ... Well if I have time =))
> 
> No Jareth here or Mausekönig but I needed to set the scene for the future chapters ...  
> Don't worry, they'll quickly come back to turn around Sarah =)
> 
> I wish you all a wonderful Christmas !!


	8. Cold rasping tongue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I said I would post a chapter before Sunday BUT I fell into a book and I'm sure you know how hard it's to get out of one =)

In her bed, Sarah tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

The events of the day were turning in her head and despite her fatigue, she couldn't help but rehash them over and over again.

As the hours went by, Uncle Drosselmeyer and Sarah had not been the only ones to realize that Eugenie had not been erased from memories like any child abducted by the Goblins. This only added to the tension, and Sarah had heard Eugenie's parents screaming and crying more than once coming from her father's library. It was clearly more reassuring for them to have their child taken by Goblins than just missing.

The search to find Eugenie continued until nightfall, mobilizing almost all of Hamelin's inhabitants capable of participating in the hunt and even people from neighboring hamlets joined in the search. Sarah had helped the servants prepare hot drinks and food to help those mobilized, but after dark, there was still no trace of the child.

  
For the second night in a row, the Williams family were all sleeping in the same room except for Cecilia. The latter had had a fit and, after the cries and tears, Sarah's parents had decided to let her sleep alone in her own room. Toby had remarked out loud that she was far too old and pretentious to interest the Goblins anyway, which upset Cecilia who had gone to lock herself noisily in her room. As for Sarah, she had thought that she was not sure that she would run the Labyrinth to save Cecilia with the same determination and that if it was the Mausekönig who kidnapped her … well, good luck to him !

  
With a smile on her face, Sarah had almost dozed off when she suddenly heard a strange noise. She stiffened, motionless in her bed, straining her ears to verify that she hadn't been dreaming. She had almost managed to convince herself that her imagination was playing tricks on her when suddenly the noise rang out again. It was like the squeal of a small animal, an injured animal, in pain.

  
Sitting up slowly, Sarah fumbled around in the dark to find her rowan branch and her bag of coarse salt before slipping out of her bed silently. Everyone in the room was sleeping soundly and Sarah took the opportunity to sneak out of the room barefoot. Once in the hallway, she quietly closed the door behind her and waited, still, on the lookout.

  
_Squeak !_

  
She suddenly turned her head to the right. The noise was coming from there ! Without wasting a moment, she tiptoed up the hall, fingers clenched around her rowan branch. Her heartbeat quickened when she reached her bedroom door. The latter was ajar and, when it should have been plunged into darkness, a gleam escaped through the crack of the door.

  
Taking a deep breath, Sarah moved silently closer and, pushing open the door with her foot, slipped inside, the rowan branch held up in front of her. But what she saw on entering stopped her dead in her tracks.

  
A small hook-nosed, tousled gray-haired creature sat in the center of Sarah's bedroom, just at the foot of her large four-poster bed. He was no bigger than a doll and downright ugly with his yellowish-brown skin, big bulging eyes and mismatched clothes. The one Sarah recognized as a goblin stood erect, and in his violently shaking hands he held a large lighted candle at arm's length like a sword. He waved it from side to side without stopping, while throwing startled glances all around him.

  
Taken aback, Sarah took a step forward and then she suddenly froze. She had just understood why the goblin was so scared.

  
Almost blending in with the darkness of the room, he was surrounded by a dozen mice. Except Sarah had never seen mice like this. They looked like they had been cut from the darkness. Their red eyes gleamed ominously, their teeth seemed sharp as knives and especially it was the way they circled the terrified goblin that confused Sarah. They dove forward to bite and scratch him before pulling away just as quickly and each time the poor goblin couldn't help but yelp. It was like they were playing with him, like a cat with… a mouse.

  
Sarah didn't think that one day she could feel sorry for a goblin but yet ...

  
Her nose wrinkled, she walked quickly over to the mice and before they had a chance to react, she poured some of her bag of coarse salt over them. Strident squeals rang out before they scatter in all directions. Sarah took advantage of the confusion to grab the goblin by the arm. The latter dropped the candle in surprise before starting to struggle while uttering shrill cries.

  
"Hush," Sarah told him dryly before placing him on her shoulder. “Don't make me regret helping you !”

  
Hearing her words, the goblin froze and looked at her with wide, amazed eyes. But before he had a chance to do anything, the mice were back, more numerous than before. Sarah took a step forward, but it was too late. The mice surrounded them, forming a tide of darkness around them. The clicking of their claws on the parquet floor echoed in the empty room, and their glowing eyes in the dark didn't seem to leave Sarah.

  
Spinning around, Sarah searched for a way to get to safety but saw nothing that could help her. Mice were blocking her access to the bed and to the patio door leading to the balcony. Hearing the sound of a door closing, she turned and saw that the door she had entered was now closed.

  
Sarah inhaled sharply and kept a firm grip on the rowan branch. She might have been trapped, but she sure wasn't going to let it go without a fight.

  
Suddenly Sarah felt the goblin on her shoulder move slowly to hide under her hair.

  
“What ...” she started, feeling him snuggle up to her neck, shaking.

  
Stiffening, she spun slowly on herself to come face to face with the Mausekönig.

  
"Well well," he whispered, stepping closer to her. “We meet again, my sweet Sarah.”

  
Squinting, Sarah raised her hand to throw the rest of her salt packet in his face but she barely had time to blink that he grabbed her by the wrist.

  
She tried to pull away but he yanked her towards him.

  
“No no no,” the Mausekönig sang, bringing his face closer to her. “Did you think it would be so easy this time ?”

  
Without taking his black eyes off Sarah, he began to squeeze her wrist harder and harder until Sarah let out a small cry and was forced to drop the bag of salt on the floor. Ignoring the stabbing pain in her wrist, Sarah attempted to strike him with the rowan branch, but the Mausekönig easily parried her attack with his scepter before grabbing her other wrist. In an instant, the rowan branch had joined the bag of salt on the ground and she found herself trapped in the Mausekönig hands. A grim smile on his face, he pulled Sarah close to him while holding both her wrists together with one hand.

  
“So what are you going to do now ?”

  
Sarah suddenly realized that she was alone, dressed in a simple white cotton nightgown that came down to her knees, barefoot, in a dark room in the middle of the night with a creature who had amply demonstrated that he was not someone to be trust and another who was currently hidden under her hair, paralyzed with fear.

  
“Let me go !” she shout, trying to pull away again.

  
But the more Sarah struggled, the more the Mausekönig tightened his grip on her wrists until the pain forced Sarah to stop. She couldn't hold back the tears that began to flow silently down her cheeks and, to her horror, her pain seemed to fascinate the Mausekönig. Slowly, without taking his eyes off her, he leaned forward, his breath brushing Sarah's face. She turned her head, but that didn't stop the Mausekönig from licking the tears that had started to dry on her cheek with his cold rasping tongue.

  
Sarah couldn't help but shudder in disgust.

  
“So sweet,” the Mausekönig whispered, rubbing his cheek against hers. “So delicious ...”

  
Standing still, Sarah was silent, her head turned to the side.

  
“Sarah Sarah,” he said, straightening up. “I thought you understood that we were on the same side and yet ... I see you are protecting the vermin !”

  
Slowly, Sarah turned her head in his direction and raised an eyebrow.

  
“Funny you talk about vermin.”

  
A flash of red flashed in his eyes and he raised his twisted scepter in her direction. For a moment Sarah thought he was going to hit her with it, but at the last moment he smiled and used his staff to force her to lift her head.

  
“You do not know …”

  
But before he could finish his sentence, a thud began to be heard in the room. The mice started to squeal and everyone froze. The noise grew louder and louder, like the sound of an approaching thunderstorm or a herd of ruminants running or ...

  
Recognizing the noise, Sarah began to smile. The psyche mirror in her room suddenly emitted a light that blinded them all. Sarah closed her eyes and she heard a loud crash and then crackles and shrill squeals. She let out a little cry as she felt the mice paws on her bare feet. Taking advantage of the confusion, Sarah again tried to extricate herself from the Mausekönig hands when suddenly he released her and she lost her balance. She had barely hit the ground with her knees that the noise just as suddenly disappeared.

  
Confused, she opened her eyes and looked around her. The Mausekönig and her mice were gone and instead there were rocks of all sizes more or less round arranged in a circle around her as if to… protect her ?

  
Sarah turned to the mirror and she had just enough time to see a large, familiar orange figure waving at her before the mirror turned back into a mirror. Sarah knelt on the floor still shaking for a moment before the goblin she had rescued brought her out of her torpor. She felt him lift her hair to move over her shoulder before jumping to the ground and land awkwardly in front of her. He looked at the stones around them, hissed between his teeth before turning to Sarah to give her a toothless smile that was a little hesitant.

  
“Thank you,” he mumbled.

  
Sarah blinked and opened her mouth to answer him when she saw that his arm was bleeding.

  
“Are you… Are you hurt ?”

  
The goblin looked at his arm in astonishment before looking at her and nodding. They stared at each other for a moment before Sarah recovered. Not believing it herself, she shook her head and stood up.

  
"Don't move," she told him sternly.

  
She walked over to her dresser to retrieve a white handkerchief from one of her drawers and then she stepped to the patio door. She opened it and hurried over to collect some snow from the balcony railing. Once back inside, she crouched down and motioned for the goblin to approach. Obviously suspicious, the latter hesitated for a moment before approaching and holding out his arm reluctantly.

  
Careful not to hurt him, Sarah took his arm and applied the snow to his wound gently. The goblin let out a little cry of surprise but under Sarah's imperious gaze, he didn't move. She proceeded to clean the blood with the snow and then the handkerchief before using it as a makeshift bandage.

  
"There you go," she said once the knot was firmly tied.

  
The goblin stared at the bandage in amazement before looking up at her.

  
“Thank you my lady.”

  
Sarah remained squatting.

  
“What's your name ?”

  
“Skib,” the goblin replied in a small voice.

  
Sarah smiles at him.

  
“Alright Skib, what can you tell me about the Mausekönig ? What does he want ?”

  
Skib lowered his eyes.

  
“Since the king ... is gone, mice are everywhere. They cannot enter the Labyrinth because the Labyrinth is still protecting us but they attack anyone who ventures outside ...”

  
“And what were you doing outside ?”

  
Skib bit his lip.

  
“I just wanted to eat a caramel. Caramel is so good !”

  
There was so much hope in his eyes that Sarah couldn't help but smile. She got up again to go rummage in her dresser and came back to him with a large caramel wrapped in a shiny foil.

  
“Here, it is for having being so brave. But next time, be more careful !”

  
Without taking his eyes off the caramel, Skib nodded enthusiastically and quickly took the caramel from her hands. After stammering confused thanks, he hurried over to the mirror only to disappear in the blink of an eye.

  
Running her hand through her hair, Sarah stood up and dusted her nightgown before meeting her gaze in the mirror. It was strange, most of her life she had been afraid of goblins, of mirrors and of noises in the night. But today, for the first time, she hadn't been afraid of goblins and she had even saved one !

  
It was as if the boundaries that she had always believed to be very clear and defined between the Good and the Evil were now much more ... blurred.

  
After getting back into her bed silently, Sarah fell asleep almost immediately and dreamed of sharp-toothed mice and an angry nutcracker.

  
She was awakened in the morning by the alarmed cries of the servants : a second child had disappeared during the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wish you all a wonderful year 2021 hoping it is better than the previous one =)  
> (strangely, 2020 for me went a lot better than 2019 so I'm not complaining too much ... But I know that's not the case for everyone so GOOD LUCK)  
> Another chapter with the Mausekönig ... I've always had a weakness for creepy villains =)  
> (don't worry, Jareth won't stay in the shadows for long !)  
> Stay safe and healthy and don't forget to read a lot =D


End file.
